Grim Grinning Ghost
by iTorchic
Summary: Alfred wakes up to find an unlikely surprise waiting for him. Meanwhile, Arthur recieves a very disturbing and worrying phone call, promptly leading him to Alfred's apartment in DC. Who's hiding in his closet? Who killed Alfred? Rated T. 3-shot.
1. Chapter 1

**So, for some reason I got this idea while playing Mario Kart Wii while I was kicking ass as King Boo, despite my main character for that game is sadly, Daisy. -shot-**

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><p>There was one thing that Alfred had an irrational and completely spazztastic fear of.<p>

Ghosts.

There was just something freaky about being able to see through their body like they were made of some sort of hazy smoke. Not to mention the way their voice had that eerie echo to it, even if they were trying to speak normally or warn someone in those movies he always liked to watch, despite his fear. They could change their shape, and there was also the fact that they could go through walls like they weren't even there.

Oh, and the fact that they were _dead_. That was probably the most legit reason.

Alfred always had a nervous tick in the back of his mind of him seeing someone that he had known when they were alive as a ghost. The legend of the ghost of Lincoln being spotted in the white house was enough to get him an apartment for himself and completely steer clear of the white house at night.

Now, all of this added together would obviously point to the fact that Alfred would steer clear of anything ghost related, except for his ghost movies which he still watched even though they scared the hell out of him and whenever he was trying to prove he was heroic. More often than not, those would backfire miserably but he would laugh it off declaring he was the hero and he _MEANT_ to run away sobbing and screaming like a little girl.

Well, Alfred had a bit of a surprise waiting for him when he woke up one fateful morning at 2 am.

When he woke up to see himself laying on his bed completely still and with a blueish tinted skin.

_"WHAT THE FUCK!"_

Now, despite being a personified country, he still reacted to this situation like any other human would when they saw that they were not actually in their body but was floating a few feet above it.

Completely freaking out.

"WAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I'M DEAAADDDDDDD! THE HEROES ARE NEVER SUPPOSED TO DIE!"

He cautiously floated down and poked at himself to see if it was real…only for his hand to go through it.

Needless to say, he had another freak out.

Now, Alfred decided to go with plan B, even if it was a bit difficult to try to learn how to hold objects without letting them literally slip through his fingers.

Call England!

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><p>Now, it was 7 am that same fateful morning in London, England where Arthur was enjoying some tea and some breakfast, enjoying the peaceful serenity of the London morning where it had rained overnight so there was that wonderful damp and fresh smell in the world and the dew clung tightly to the freshly cut grass. All you could hear was the slight hum of morning traffic and the soft chirping of the birds in the tree that had been growing in his front yard since he had first owned the place, and Arthur's cell phone.<p>

His cell phone?

The Brit frowned when he checked the caller ID, not at all surprised to see who it was but wasn't it 2 am in DC with the time difference? Like Alfred would care…

"What is it you bloody git? Shouldn't you be asleep right now?"

"…"

Arthur paused, not hearing anything on the other side of the line and was slightly confused. Where was the frantic screaming caused by a cheaply made American horror movie?

"Hello?" He tried again, a little less sure of himself this time around.

**_"…Arthur…"_** A chill went down his spine as his name was called. That was certainly not normal. It was a wispy sort of voice, with a kind of quality that you only heard before there was some sort of murderer behind your back ready to strike you down with a rusty axe. Arthur checked behind himself nervously to make sure.

"Alfred?"

_**"….Arthur…..help me…"**_ The Brit blinked. This was Alfred? It sounded like the life was drained right out of him.

"Alfred, what's wrong?" He asked a little more urgently. This wasn't like America at all. There was no response on the other end but he heard the phone clatter to the floor and the line go dead.

That's it. There was no way in **hell** he wasn't going to Alfred's apartment right this very moment.

He quickly turned off the stove, cleaned off the food from his half eaten breakfast, threw some clothes in a bag and grabbed his keys and wallet and locked the door behind him as he left for the airport. Something was seriously wrong and he was going to find out exactly what the hell was going on.

He just couldn't get that icy gnawing pit of dread clawing at his insides.

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><p>Alfred swore as he lost concentration and his cell phone drop out of his translucent hands and clatter to the floor, the battery jumping out of the small electronic. He had used all of his willpower just in getting three words out that Arthur could catch. Sure, he'd tried speaking normally when Arthur picked up the phone, but it was like the lighter-haired blond couldn't understand him, or his own words got carried off into the wind. It was hard enough just trying to keep a grip on the phone but trying to get those words out had given him a headache…if that happened as a ghost…he let out another shiver at referring to himself as the one thing he was terrified of.<p>

Alfred was exhausted and just wanted to go back to sleep, but taking one look at his…body laying there made him rethink his plan…

His walk-in closet door was open and it was pretty big…he could stay in there. He didn't want to experience going through walls. He was already trying not to freak out every time he looked down and saw that he could see through his own limbs.

Curling up in a little ball near the back of his large closet amidst the clutter of a mixture of clean and dirty clothes, he pushed the situation as far back into the recesses of his mind and slowly drifted off to sleep.

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><p>Arthur was glad that Alfred was so predictable at hiding the key to his apartment. Always underneath the marvel superhero welcome mat, like always but taped to the bottom of it. Smart move, but he's have to find somewhere else to put it at some point.<p>

_'If he's not seriously injured or something…_' he thought to himself but quickly banished the thought from his mind as he entered the medium sized D.C. apartment.

"Alfred? Are you there?" He called and the dread in his being only grew as he searched the apartment. There was a pizza box on the living room table next to an Xbox 360 controller. There were stacks of games next to a remote to Alfred's flat screen he'd won in that one online competition. Rolling his eyes, Arthur moved on.

The kitchen was actually in a clean state, with only a few glasses and bowls sitting in the sink, still unclean from the day before and a lone soda can sat on the otherwise clean countertop. Arthur quickly checked the medium sized bathroom, then the small office but found no trace of the American.

He finally reached the closed bedroom door and took a deep breath. This was the only room he didn't check. He slowly opened the door to see a cell phone and it's battery scattered on the floor next to the king sized bed where Alfred laid, completely still and peaceful. Too peaceful.

"Alfred?" He whispered. He noticed the pale blueness to the man's face and he himself paled. He put fingers to Alfred's neck and drew away for a moment from the coldness of his skin but checked for a pulse…and didn't receive any response from the lad's heart.

"Oh bloody hell…" He slowly backed away from the body of his former charge and tried to control his breathing. Alfred? Dead? There was no way in hell that the lively boy he had raised was ever so quiet and reserved! He tripped backwards on some clothes on the ground and fell into the closet where he head someone gasp and Arthur quickly spotted Alfred's gun he kept near the door of his closet, which he had boasted about having for quite some time, and whipped around quickly to aim at Alfred's possible killer only to turn, ironically, ghostly pale.

_**"Arthur?"**_

And he fired.

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><p><strong>So, I decided to make this into a 2-shot at least. XD HA! THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING YOU, ISN'T IT? Well, I hope you review ;) It might make me happy enough to finish the story =P<strong>

**JK, it'll probably be up tomorrow ((AKA later today since it's 2:27 am as I finish typing this little bit XD))**


	2. Chapter 2

**So, sorry I didn't update earlier! I went to an epic graduation party where I was knighted as a Catholic knight. XD**

**Yeah, and I sorta made myself cry again when I watched Ray from 'The Princess and the Frog' die…it gets me every time dammit!**

**Anyways, here's chapter 2!**

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><p>There was a loud as the bullet took off from the gun and sped towards it's target and hit dead on. Neither one of the two moved.<p>

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?"

**_"GAHHHHH! IGGY YOU SHOT RIGHT THROUGH ME!"_**

Indeed, right between where Alfred's eye were, the bullet had lodged itself in the wall behind him.

"BUT- YOU'RE IN THERE!"

_**"IGGY! WHAT HAPPENED? THE HERO ISN'T SUPPOSED TO SAVE HIMSELF! I GOT TURNED INTO AN EVIL VILLIAN OF A GHOST!"**_ Arthur couldn't help but roll his eyes at the antics of his younger counterpart, but he decided to try and evaluate this situation. Alfred was…dead…in his bed in the next room over. He quickly leaned back to check, that yes, the body was still there. However, sitting right in front of him was the ghost of his former charge, completely freaking out at the fact he was, in fact, dead or at least having an out of body experience.

"Just- calm down Alfred! I can't try and figure out what happened if you're screaming your head off!" He shouted and Alfred quieted down at least. The boy looked pitiful: tears overflowing from his eyes and sliding down his face and disappearing in wisps of air as they fell from his chin after bypassing his quivering bottom lip. All in all, he was a ghostly mess and this whole situation was incredibly strange that even Arthur didn't know what to do.

"Alright, we're going to keep calm, and carry on; alright Alfred?" He received a nod in reply and Arthur sighed internally. He did feel bad for the boy. He got up and went back into the bedroom, the American following loyally behind however keeping himself out of the view of his body. Arthur peeled back the covers of comforter and sheet revealing about half of the body. It was a grayish hue and made Arthur sick to his stomach and missing the slightly tanned skin that Alfred naturally had. He scanned the body, but his eyes locked onto a black mark on Alfred's neck. Leaning in closer, he quickly examined the image seemingly attached to his skin.

It was a simple single spiral, intriguing Arthur. He hadn't expected to find Celtic symbols here…but now he just had to remember what it was…oh right! Letting go, release, awareness of the whole, revolutions of time…and that's the most he could recall offhand. The other symbol was clearly a moon: mystery, wonder, shadow, balance, emotion. Well, those were certainly what was troubling them right now in the first place. It was a waning moon, signifying letting go and release…of his spirit?

_**"What's wrong with me Arthur?"**_ Alfred whimpered and he quickly looked away from the pictures adorning the neck of the dead man to look at the ghost. He smiled softly and sighed.

"I'm looking into it now Alfred. I think that a spirit release charm was put on you. Without your spirit or soul, your body can't function so it shuts down like yours did. Luckily, it'll be easier to fix this since you're not a normal human, It would usually take a sacrifice with one of them…" He ended up murmuring and Alfred's eyes widened. _"Bloody hell…"_ He sighed as Alfred was worked up into hysterics again. At least he knew what the problem was; he just needed the git to calm down and the right tools. He just couldn't think of who did this in the first place...

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><p><strong>Lame ending to short chapter is lame. XD This is what I get for typing it up literally at 3 am. Well, g'night everybody!<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**So, sorry about not updating this for awhile. I was gone to visit family in Indiana for a week and then I was having a bit of writers block for how to end it. Well, a talk with my friend and fellow writer, scarlettphantom55 who is my friend at school, we decided a way to end it and keep it pretty awesome. And freaky. Mostly freaky.**

**Well, enjoy!**

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><p>Arthur and Alfred jumped as the cell phone adorned in the ghost nation's flag rang, nearly giving the older one a heart attack.<p>

**"If you don't mind…"** Alfred mumbled and Arthur picked up the line.

"Hello?"

_"Hello, is this Arthur?"_ Oh what was his name…

"Yes it is. To whom am I speaking to?"

_"…seriously, you don't know?"_

"No." Arthur drawled and when Alfred mouthed 'Who is it?', he only shrugged.

The other person sighed and he heard a softer voice in the background._ "Is Alfred there?"_

"I'm..sorry but he's a bit busy at the moment. Can I take a message?"

_"I was hoping he wasn't..."_ The person murmured and the Brit was a bit confused, _"Can you tell him that it was nice seeing him yesterday?"_ Arthur couldn't help but raise a big bushy eyebrow at that; who had Alfred met with yesterday?

"Sure. And your name for the message?"

_"You both should know who I am Arthur! You'll figure who I am sooner or later!"_ An angry scream then the phone when dead, leaving Arthur quite unsure who the caller was and why he knew his name.

**"And?"** Alfred had floated right in the Brit's face, startling him and leaving him to fall back into the closet door.

"Bloody hell Alfred! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" He exclaimed and Alfred backed away sheepishly.

**"I guess I'm doing a good job of being a ghost then…"** He mumbled and Arthur's eyes softened.

"It's alright lad. Well, the caller said he appreciated seeing you yesterday." Alfred furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

**"Wait, I was at home all day. The doorbell rang and I went to go answer it, but no one was there so I just played video games."**

"Strange…" Arthur looked back to the body again and winced. He examined the tattoo again, only to be left disappointed. "Alfred, I do fear that this became permanent when it was put on. It seems to be tattooed and the soul can only be out of the body so long before the bond snaps and the soul is sent to the other world." Alfred's eyes widened as he began shaking his head back and forth and backed away.

**"No..no no no no…the hero can't die! The hero never dies! There has to be some way of fixing this Iggy with one you're your magic spells or something!"** Arthur looked sadly at the body before meeting Alfred in the eyes.

"I'll try all I can." With that, they agreed to take the long flight back to England to try and locate a spell to try and help the situation however they ran into a problem. Every time Alfred would try and follow with, he'd begin to fade out existence when he got too far away from his body. Not willing to risk Alfred to the beyond, Arthur promised him that he'd be back within a day or so with the spell and to keep himself pre-occupied.

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><p>It was a nervous trip back to his home for Arthur, who felt as if someone was glaring at him the entire time. Constantly checking, he saw no one even looking at him. Shrugging, the Englishman turned back around wondering why the airplane had an empty seat on the usually booked flight.<p>

After hailing a taxi, Arthur continued his trek back home through the dark and stormy evening feeling anxious and nervous but he couldn't just place exactly why. Sure, he was worried about his former charge, but this was something different completely…

He quickly unlocked the door to his house and took off his raincoat, hanging it by the door while the water dripped onto the floor, creating a large puddle in front of the door and Arthur frowned but left it alone. He needed to find that spell first.

Quickly, he descended into his magic lair that was located in his basement, scanning through books and texts for the right spell he needed. Hearing a loud bang as the front door slammed open, he shrugged. He hadn't figured the storm would blow in his door. Grinning, Arthur nearly let out laugh as he found the right book and rushed up the stairs. The front door was wide open and the puddle had grown. 'Wait…footprints?' he mused as he saw separate puddles stemming from the larger one heading into the kitchen.

Wait.

"AUGH!" He screamed as he felt something stab into his back and he stumbled forward, collapsing on the ground, quickly feeling lightheaded. "What the…hell?" Arthur murmured as his attacker walked around and crouched down to look his victim in the eyes. _"You?"_

"Yes Arthur, me. Who else would be able to know the correct seals and spells to separate Alfred's soul from his body? By time anyone else notices he's been missing, it'll be too late. Just like you."

"But…how? Why?" Arthur whimpered as he tried to push away the haziness from his mind. He was loosing too much blood too fast.

"It was easy when you often forgot I existed when you were dealing with Alfred, even after he left and I was the only one you had to care for, not that you did much after you collected me from France. Even now, you forget who I am and what my country is!"

"But…Matthew! I'm sorry, but why are you even doing this!" Arthur pleaded. He couldn't fight off the blackness beginning to envelop his mind and sight. Matthew merely wiped his blood stained hands off on Arthur's sweater vest with a sadistic grin. His purple eyes were wild with madness and insanity, pleased that his gruesome act was finally coming to play after brooding about it for who knows how many years.

"Don't worry Arthur~" He purred and Arthur shuddered, trying to keep his eyes open. "I'm only disposing of everyone who don't even know I exist. Now, that may be about three fourths of the world, but what does that matter? There'll be people like Francis, Gilbert, and the others who are my friends. Since a majority of my actual family didn't even know who I was, I depended on them." The Canadian got up again, brushing off some dried blood off his red hoodie.

"But…Alfred…" Arthur murmured as the darkness finally was claiming it's newest victim.

"Don't worry about that. You'll see him soon enough." Matthew said with a laugh and he grinned as Arthur finally died, the butcher knife still embedded in his back, blood pooling along with the rainwater on the rug. He pulled on his jacket and closed the door to the estate and walked down the driveway in the pouring rain as he sang. ?He couldn't help it, today was a great day and he still wasn't done with his list yet! He hailed a taxi and went out into the world, unknowingly letting an unknown murderer back into it's midst. They would all find out about him, soon enough.

**_"All the world is falling down, falling down, falling down. Dead and buried in the ground. My dear Arthur~"_**

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><p><strong>So, that's the direction I took it in. XDDD I tend to love writing Psycho!Canada! =D Anyways, scarlettphantom55 wrote the last little song thing but I edited it a little. I hope you enjoyed it! And yes, I KILLED OFF ALFRED AND MATTHEW. I TEND TO LIKE MURDERING OFF CHARACTERS. XDDDDDDD Mwhahaahh. =3D<strong>


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